MelaMEd Online Training for General Practitioners to Improve Melanoma Detection and Management

NCT07757386 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: L4P3037wfn.27L4
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 1,531
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 10

Brief Summary

The goal of this trial was to learn whether the MelaMEd online training program could improve doctors' skills in the early detection and management of melanoma, the most aggressive type of skin cancer. The participants were primary care physicians, including general practitioners, general practice trainees, and pediatricians. The main questions were: Did the training improve doctors' ability to identify skin lesions that might be melanoma? Did the training improve their knowledge of melanoma prevention, diagnosis, and management? Did the training help doctors make better decisions about referring patients to a dermatologist? Participants first completed an online questionnaire. It included questions about melanoma and images of skin lesions. Participants then completed the MelaMEd online training course. After the training, participants completed a second questionnaire with the same main questions. They also answered questions about their confidence in managing melanoma and their experience with the course. Researchers compared each participant's answers before and after the training. There was no separate comparison group.

Conditions

Cutaneous Melanoma

Keywords

MelaMEd; General Practitioners; Primary Care Physicians; Medical Education; E-Learning; Melanoma Detection; Diagnostic Accuracy; Skin Lesion Triage; Continuing Medical Education

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Change in Melanoma Knowledge After MelaMEd Training

  Melanoma knowledge was assessed using seven multiple-choice questions covering ultraviolet radiation, complete skin examination, the ABCDE rule, the EFG rule, the Ugly Duckling sign, dermoscopy, and Breslow thickness. For each question, the percentage of participants selecting the correct answer was calculated before and after training using matched responses. Higher percentages indicate better melanoma knowledge.

  Pre-training baseline and post-training assessment within 10 days of completion of the online course

• Change in Diagnostic Performance Across 10 Skin Lesion Cases

  Diagnostic performance was assessed using 10 clinical images of melanocytic and non-melanocytic skin lesions. For each case, participants classified the lesion as benign or malignant and selected the most likely diagnosis from four options. The percentages of correct benign or malignant classifications and correct diagnoses were calculated before and after training using matched responses. Pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and overall accuracy were also calculated. Higher values indicate better diagnostic performance.

  Pre-training baseline and post-training assessment within 10 days of completion of the online course

• Change in Dermatology Referral Decisions for Skin Lesions

  Using the same 10 clinical cases, participants indicated whether the person should be referred to a dermatologist for specialist assessment and possible excision. For each case, the percentage of participants selecting referral was calculated before and after training using matched responses. Changes were interpreted according to the reference diagnosis, with the aim of increasing referral of malignant lesions and reducing unnecessary referral of benign lesions.

  Pre-training baseline and post-training assessment within 10 days of completion of the online course

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Change in Self-Reported Confidence in Melanoma Prevention and Detection

  Pre-training baseline and post-training assessment within 10 days of completion of the online course

• Participant Satisfaction and Perceived Usefulness of the MelaMEd Training

  Post-training assessment within 10 days of completion of the online course

Study Arms (1)

MelaMEd Online Training

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants received the MelaMEd asynchronous online educational program, including video lessons, interactive clinical cases, and access to the MelaMEd multimedia platform. Knowledge of melanoma, diagnostic performance, referral decisions, and self-reported confidence were assessed before and after the training. No control or comparison arm was included.

Behavioral: MelaMEd Online Training Program

Interventions

MelaMEd Online Training Program BEHAVIORAL

The intervention was a free, self-paced asynchronous e-learning course titled "Early Diagnosis and Management of the Therapeutic Diagnostic Pathway of Melanoma," integrated with the MelaMEd multimedia platform. The course included video lectures and interactive clinical cases covering melanoma risk factors, sun exposure and photoprotection, skin examination, clinical recognition rules such as the ABCDE rule, the EFG rule, and the "Ugly Duckling" sign, histopathological diagnosis, surgical and medical treatment, staging, prognosis, and referral decision-making. The linked MelaMEd platform provided clinical, dermoscopic, and histological images, interactive educational resources, and access to guidelines and scientific literature.

MelaMEd Online Training

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Licensed general practitioners, general practitioners in training, or pediatricians working in the healthcare system areas served by participating Italian Melanoma Intergroup centers.
• Voluntary agreement to participate in the study evaluation.
• Confirmation that the participant had read and understood the information on personal data processing.
• Authorization for the processing of personal data in accordance with European Union Regulation 2016/679.

You may not qualify if:

• Individuals who did not authorize the processing of their personal data could access the MelaMEd educational course and platform but were not included in the evaluation of the training program.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori Dino Amadori IRST S.r.l. IRCCS: lead
• Intergruppo Melanoma Italiano: collaborator

Study Sites (10)

Dermatology and Dermosurgery Unit, San Giuseppe Moscati Hospital

Avellino, Campania, 83100, Italy

Location

Divisione di Dermatologia Cesena/Forlì AUSL Romagna e Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Bologna

Cesena, Emilia-Romagna, 47521, Italy

Location

Section of Dermatology and Infectious Diseases, University of Ferrara

Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, 44121, Italy

Location

SC Dermatologia, Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Parma, Parma

Parma, Emilia-Romagna, 43126, Italy

Location

Istituto Dermopatico dell'Immacolata (IDI)-IRCCS, Roma

Rome, Lazio, 00167, Italy

Location

Unità di Dermatologia, ASST Papa Giovanni XXIII Ospedale di Bergamo, Bergamo

Bergamo, Lombardy, 24127, Italy

Location

Unità di Dermatologia, Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale (ASST) Lecco, Ospedale Alessandro Manzoni, Lecco

Lecco, Lombardy, 23900, Italy

Location

Clinica Dermatologica, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo Pavia, Università degli Studi di Pavia, Pavia

Pavia, Lombardy, 27100, Italy

Location

Melanoma Skin Centre, ASST dei Sette Laghi, Ospedale di Circolo e Fondazione Macchi

Varese, Lombardy, 21100, Italy

Location

Dipartimento di Medicina, Chirurgia e Farmacia, Università di Sassari, Sassari

Sassari, Sardinia, 07100, Italy

Location

Related Links

• Official MelaMEd (Melanoma Multimedia Education) educational platform used in the study, providing multimedia resources on melanoma prevention, early detection, diagnosis, management, and referral.

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Melanoma

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Neuroendocrine Tumors; Neuroectodermal Tumors; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal; Neoplasms by Histologic Type; Neoplasms; Neoplasms, Nerve Tissue; Nevi and Melanomas; Skin Neoplasms; Neoplasms by Site; Skin Diseases; Skin and Connective Tissue Diseases

Study Officials

• Ignazio Stanganelli, MD

  Skin Cancer Unit, IRCCS Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori (IRST) "Dino Amadori"

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Biostatistician

Model Details: All participants were assigned to the same MelaMEd educational intervention. The study used a single-group before-and-after design, with no control or comparison arm. Training effectiveness was assessed by comparing available paired responses to questionnaires completed before and after the intervention.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 16, 2026
• First Posted: August 11, 2026
• Study Start: June 1, 2022
• Primary Completion: December 31, 2023
• Study Completion: December 31, 2023
• Last Updated: August 11, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-08

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL
• Time Frame: The data will become available after acceptance of the primary manuscript and deposition of the final dataset in Zenodo. They will remain available without a planned end date.
• Access Criteria: The de-identified dataset will be publicly available through Zenodo under the terms of the license assigned to the repository record.

Locations

IT (10)